Conventional oil and gas separators typically use large vessels that rely on natural or gravity separation to achieve the desired separation performance. The performance of the separator vessel is generally monitored by observing the downstream processes. Various sampling systems can also be used to monitor the separator's performance, and require special hardware to be installed in the outlet gas piping.
An improved apparatus for separating an oil/liquid phase from a gas phase contained in a wellhead fluid from a hydrocarbon production system is disclosed in the U.S. application Ser. No. 08/695,947 filed Aug. 13, 1996 titled COMPACT, HIGH-EFFICIENCY, GAS/LIQUID SEPARATOR METHOD AND APPARATUS, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/337,359 filed Nov. 10, 1994, now abandoned, both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. Unless otherwise stated, definitions of terms in Ser. No. 08/695,947 are valid for this disclosure also. Field testing of that compact, gas/oil separation apparatus has demonstrated that it is quite efficient at separating a wellhead fluid mixture containing crude oil, produced water, and hydrocarbon gas from a hydrocarbon production system into its gas and liquid parts. The compact, gas/oil separator preferably utilizes one or more curved-arm, centrifugal force, primary separator(s) and one or more cyclone, centrifugal force, secondary separator(s), always employed in pairs. The compact, gas/oil separator apparatus can be used in multiple pairs (two or more primary and two or more secondary separators) or in a single pair configuration having only a single primary and a single secondary separator.
The trend in the hydrocarbon production industry is to utilize equipment that is more compact than the traditional separation equipment, and the above-identified compact, gas/oil separator apparatus fits these requirements. The compactness has the obvious advantages of smaller size and less weight, that translates into real cost savings when applied to an offshore platform. However, an inherent disadvantage of compact separation equipment due to its smaller size is its reduced capability to handle upsets in the system. Without a means for continuous monitoring of performance, there is the risk of a poor performing separator affecting downstream processes.